{"id":40502,"date":"2024-12-13T07:33:38","date_gmt":"2024-12-13T07:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/questions\/is-one-claim-in-the-book-the-amityville-horror-probably-baloney-or-possibly-true\/"},"modified":"2024-12-13T07:33:38","modified_gmt":"2024-12-13T07:33:38","slug":"is-one-claim-in-the-book-the-amityville-horror-probably-baloney-or-possibly-true","status":"publish","type":"questions","link":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/questions\/is-one-claim-in-the-book-the-amityville-horror-probably-baloney-or-possibly-true\/","title":{"rendered":"Is one claim in the book The Amityville Horror probably baloney, or possibly true?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Research question: <\/h3>\n

Is one claim in the book The Amityville Horror<\/em> probably baloney, or possibly true?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thesis statement: <\/h3>\n

In this essay, your thesis statement should be your answer<\/em> to the research question.<\/p>\n

Length:<\/strong> <\/h3>\n

A minimum of 1500 words (about 6 pages), double-spaced, using a size 12 font, in MLA format. <\/strong>You can write more than this, but your essay must be at least 1500 words. Your Works Cited page does not count toward the word total.<\/p>\n

Sources:<\/h3>\n

You will incorporate five sources into your essay<\/strong>. You already have two sources:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Your primary source is The Amityville Horror<\/em><\/strong><\/li>\n
  • One secondary source is our Canvas course<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    You may find your three other secondary sources from articles we have read in our class, on the Internet, in the ECC library, in the library databases<\/strong> (available on MyECC), or any other kind of credible, college-worthy source. Look for legitimate authorities.<\/p>\n

    NOTE: Wikipedia is NOT a credible, college-worthy source, and can NOT be used in this essay.<\/p>\n

    Explanation: <\/h3>\n

    Think critically about the same claim you investigated in Essay 1, using at least seven <\/em>Baloney Detection tools.<\/p>\n

    In Essay 1, you thought critically about your chosen claim using these four Baloney Detection tools:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Wherever possible, there must be independent confirmation of the “facts”<\/li>\n
    • Spin more than one hypothesis<\/li>\n
    • Occam’s razor<\/li>\n
    • Always ask whether the hypothesis can be, at least in principle, falsified<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      We’ve come a long way since then! Now we have a full Baloney Detection Toolkit:<\/p>\n

      Revise your essay, examining the same claim using any concepts from at least seven <\/em>Baloney Detection tools you\u2019ve learned throughout our course. <\/strong>The whole Canvas course is one of your secondary sources! For example, you might want to examine your claims in terms of the reliability of personal experience (The Amityville Horror<\/em> is based on George and Kathy Lutz\u2019s personal experience).<\/p>\n

      Helpful hints: <\/h3>\n
        \n
      • You may use Essay 1 as a rough draft of this essay<\/strong>. Start with what you already wrote in Essay 1, and add to or revise your draft.<\/li>\n
      • Include concepts from at least seven Baloney Detection tools from our Baloney Detection Toolkit. <\/strong>The tools you use are your choice. Here are all the tools we’ve discussed this semester, with questions that will get you started thinking critically:<\/li>\n
      • \n
          \n
        • Wherever possible, there must be independent confirmation of the \u201cfacts.\u201d<\/strong>\n
            \n
          • What does the article say the \u201cfacts\u201d are? Are these really facts? (NOTE: This is a great place to include a quotation or two from the book.)<\/li>\n
          • How many people witnessed the event? Are any of these people independent from each other?<\/li>\n
          • What kind of evidence is presented in the article? Is the evidence empirical or anecdotal? How strong is the evidence? <\/li>\n
          • Is any bias present in the claim or the evidence? What does any bias mean for the trustworthiness of the claim?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
          • Spin more than one hypothesis.<\/strong>\n
              \n
            • What are other possible reasons for what happened? Think of one or two.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
            • Occam\u2019s razor<\/strong>\n
                \n
              • Discuss all the questions that must be answered in order for the claim to be true.<\/li>\n
              • Discuss all the questions that must be answered in order for your alternative hypotheses to be true.<\/li>\n
              • Which hypothesis (the article\u2019s claim or your alternative hypotheses) has the least<\/em> number of questions that must be answered? Why might the number of questions\/type of questions be important?<\/li>\n
              • Apply Occam\u2019s razor. Based on your analysis, which hypothesis is most likely to be true?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
              • Always ask whether the hypothesis can be, at least in principle, falsified.<\/strong>\n
                  \n
                • Is it possible to fake the hypothesis\u2014or any evidence for or against the hypothesis? If so, how could it be done?<\/li>\n
                • How could we find out if the hypothesis was faked? What tests could we run?<\/li>\n
                • How do we know when to trust that a hypothesis\u2014or any evidence for or against the hypothesis\u2014is real?<\/li>\n
                • What are your criteria for trustworthiness of a hypothesis or evidence?<\/li>\n
                • Is it reasonable to think that evidence was faked just because someone says it is?<\/li>\n
                • Is it reasonable to think that evidence was faked just because it disproves a hypothesis you believe in?<\/li>\n
                • Why would people believe the claim–or evidence proving or disproving the claim–was real? Why would people believe the claim–or evidence proving or disproving the claim–was fake?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                • \n
                    \n
                  • If there’s a chain of argument, every link in the chain must work<\/strong>\n
                      \n
                    • Does the claim make an argument? If so, what are the premises, and what is the conclusion? <\/li>\n
                    • What is the argument’s structure?<\/li>\n
                    • Is the argument good or bad?<\/li>\n
                    • Is the argument valid or invalid?<\/li>\n
                    • Do you see any logical fallacies in the claim? Which ones? How are they working in the claim?<\/li>\n
                    • Do you see any appeals in the claim? Which ones? How are they working in the claim?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                    • Don’t get overly attached to a hypothesis just because it’s yours<\/strong>\n
                        \n
                      • Is the person in the book overly attached to their belief about what happened? How might their belief affect their ability to think critically?<\/li>\n
                      • How might perceptual constancies and other perception concepts affect what the person experienced?\n
                          \n
                        • Color constancy<\/li>\n
                        • Size constancy<\/li>\n
                        • Pareidolia<\/li>\n
                        • Problems with memory<\/li>\n
                        • Expectation<\/li>\n
                        • Representativeness heuristic<\/li>\n
                        • Denying the evidence<\/li>\n
                        • Confirmation bias<\/li>\n
                        • Availability error <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                        • Encourage substantive debate on the evidence by knowledgeable proponents of all points of view<\/strong>\n
                            \n
                          • Do Anson or the Lutzes introduce other points of view?<\/li>\n
                          • Do Anson or the Lutzes introduce substantive debate on the evidence?<\/li>\n
                          • Are any knowledgeable proponents introduced by Anson or the Lutzes? Who are they? What do they say?<\/li>\n
                          • What issues might a substantive debate raise about the evidence?<\/li>\n
                          • Do any cognitive biases in the book interfere with possible substantive debate about your chosen claim? (that is, even if there’s a knowledgeable debate, would any cognitive biases like confirmation bias or denying the evidence keep a debate from exploring all the important issues?)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                          • Quantify<\/strong>\n
                              \n
                            • Is any qualitative or quantitative evidence given in the book?<\/li>\n
                            • Do Anson or the Lutzes present as evidence any statistics from reliable sources?<\/li>\n
                            • What statistics\/data exist that could support the claim in the book?<\/li>\n
                            • What statistics\/data exist that support your alternative hypothesis? (Here is a great place to research and locate an outside source. If you can find statistics\/data that support your alternative hypothesis, you will have strong empirical evidence that your alternative hypothesis may be true.)<\/li>\n
                            • What qualitative evidence exists that supports your alternative hypothesis?<\/li>\n
                            • What can statistics\/data show us about the claim and\/or your alternative hypothesis?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                            • Arguments from authority carry little weight<\/strong>\n
                                \n
                              • Who is presented as an authority in The Amityville Horror<\/em>?<\/li>\n
                              • Does the authority say anything about your chosen claim?<\/li>\n
                              • Is this person an expert in the area of the claim?<\/li>\n
                              • Is this person a false authority?<\/li>\n
                              • Who is presented as an authority about your alternative hypothesis? (Here is a good place to do outside research. Who are the experts that study issues involved with your alternative hypothesis? What studies have they conducted?)<\/li>\n
                              • What does the authority say about the issues involved in your alternative hypothesis?<\/li>\n
                              • Is this person an expert in the area of your alternative hypothesis?<\/li>\n
                              • Is this person a false authority?<\/li>\n
                              • Does the authority present evidence, or just give an opinion without evidence?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                                Helpful hints<\/h3>\n
                                  \n
                                • You are not trying to figure out whether everything in the book is true! We just don’t have the evidence. Instead, you are thinking critically about one <\/em>of the claims presented in the book.<\/strong><\/li>\n
                                • You do not have to answer all the questions I provide in this assignment. <\/strong>These questions are to help you begin applying the Baloney Detection Tools to the claim.<\/li>\n
                                • Add to your existing discussion of the four Baloney Detection Tools you discussed in Essay 1. <\/strong>Now that you know more about critical thinking, what more would you like to say about the evidence, about possible bias, about your alternative hypothesis?<\/li>\n
                                • Look over all of the Baloney Detection Tools and their questions.<\/strong> See which ones could involve your chosen claim. Then choose the tools you wish to apply in this essay.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                                  Research question: Is one claim in the book The Amityville Horror probably baloney, or possibly true? Thesis statement: In this essay, your thesis statement should be your answer to the research question. Length: A minimum of 1500 words (about 6 pages), double-spaced, using a size 12 font, in MLA format. You can write more than […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"disciplines":[14],"paper_types":[],"tagged":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/questions\/40502"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/questions"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/questions"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/questions\/40502\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"disciplines","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/disciplines?post=40502"},{"taxonomy":"paper_types","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/paper_types?post=40502"},{"taxonomy":"tagged","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.writemyessays.app\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tagged?post=40502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}